Making Progress Towards My Goals - September 2024 Update

I continue making progress.

Financial

My goal this year is to invest 40% of my gross income from meeting work - 30% to index funds and 10% to something more aggressive.  In September I moved 41% of my meeting income to investment accounts.

I purchased shares of the Vanguard Total World Stock Index Admiral Fund for the 30%.  I have not yet deployed the cash for the "more aggressive" investment.

*This will not match what I report in my income blog as payments aren't always received in the month the work was performed.

Health

I'm doing well meeting my exercise goals by exercising at least 5x/week.  

Simplify

I cancelled SiriusXM and Netflix.  We generally turn off and on our streaming subscriptions to watch new stuff, so I'm sure we will subscribe to Netflix again.  I have had the SiriusXM subscription for several years, and have always been offered a very low retention rate.  This time, it was not offered, so I cancelled.

Additionally, I redeemed the Savings Bonds I purchased a couple years ago when rates were much higher.  The current rate is less than 3% so there was no value in keeping funds there.

Have Fun, on a Budget

My goal is to spend less than $5,000 on "Fun" in 2024.  I'm getting close to hitting that number and there is still three months to go, so I'll do some brainstorming about how to mitigate this expense.

My Frugal Miser - September 2024 Income

My September income remains solid.

I received rent from both rental properties in Alabama. I also received one Realty Mogul distribution and a small monthly distribution from Open Door Capital.  

In September I worked three meeting jobs.  October will be significantly less unfortunately.  I supplemented "active" income by doing several Amazon routes.

Interest income got a one-time boost from the redemption of all the US Treasury bonds I owned.

The last quarter of the year is going to be rough.  I only have one meeting contracted and some very small filler work.  I'll likely do more Amazon routes to boost my income.

September Income: $11,847

$4,275 Meeting Jobs
$0 Gig Apps (Rideshare, Food Deliveries, etc.)
$960 Amazon Deliveries

$2,698 Rental Income (Rental Expenses: $310)
$3,846 Interest Income

$68 Other Sources

Investment Accounts Change in Value:  $4,535

My investments were up in September.

My Frugal Miser - September 2024 Expenses

I spent a lot in September, but much of it was pulling forward future spending to meet a credit card bonus.  

• Utilities were high because I bought a new phone.  
• Household spending was over $1,000 because I finally replaced our broken dishwasher.
• I paid the third quarter estimated tax payment of $2,000.
• I prepaid a few months of health insurance.

Fun

We love adventures.  Spending on experiences makes us better humans.  

• We went to Huntsville, AL for the South Star Music Festival.  Hurricane Helene damaged the grounds and the second day of the festival was cancelled, so I should receive a 50% refund for my tickets.  I also paid cash for our flight and car rental because the point/mile redemption rate was poor.  I used hotel points to cover our accommodations.

September Expenses:  $7,918

$310 Auto (service, gas, insurance, AAA, etc.)

$36 Bank Fees (annual fees on credit cards)
$232 Clothing/ Personal Care

$1,762 Fun (vacations, movies, gambling, alcohol, concert tickets)

$518 Food

$1,111 Health and Dental

$1,184 Household/Home Repairs

$36 Unreimbursed Job Expense

($532) Reimbursed Job Expense income this month

$0 Interest Expense

$64 Miscellaneous (cat sitter, gifts)

$2,000 Taxes

$1,144 Utilities 

Making Progress Towards My Goals - August 2024 Update

August is usually a slow month in my industry, and 2024 was no exception.  That doesn't mean I sat around watching Netflix:  I did several Amazon routes and found a sweepstakes hustle with Chumba Casino thanks to a friend of mine.

Financial

My goal this year is to invest 40% of my gross income from meeting work - 30% to index funds and 10% to something more aggressive.  In August I moved 56% of my meeting income to investment accounts.

In August, I earned $4,200 from meeting work.   I transferred $500 to the brokerage account where I make more aggressive investments and $1,850 to my other brokerage account. 

I purchased shares of the Vanguard Total World Stock Index Admiral Fund for the 30%.  For the "more aggressive" investment, I short sold Beyond Meat stock and also bought a PUT option against Beyond Meat.

*This will not match what I report in my income blog as payments aren't always received in the month the work was performed.

Health

I'm doing well meeting my exercise goals by exercising at least 5x/week.  

Simplify

We took an oversized bag of donations to our local thrift store.  It's next to our Planet Fitness which makes it really convenient.  I still have more clothes than I need and should find time to go through my closet again.

Have Fun, on a Budget

Our next vacation is in October.  We are taking a cruise from New Orleans.  The cruise was "free" - I paid a $200 deposit which is refunded as onboard credit.  We are flying to New Orleans two days ahead of the cruise to have a little local fun.  I redeemed free nights for the hotel (my Hyatt credit card gives me a free night every year and I earned a second free night because I spent $15,000 on the card last year).  The flights were also free.  I get a $200 annual credit through my Platinum AMEX card and used points as well.  This is definitely a frugal trip!  In September I will prepay for an excursion at our favorite all inclusive beach resort in Costa Maya.  I can't say enough good things about Maya Chan Resort.  I am such a fan that I even bought the book the founder wrote about starting the resort.